‘Significant amount of blood’ found at home of missing mom, California police say

UPDATE: The body of missing mother Rachel Castillo, 25, was found Sunday, Nov. 13, in a remote part of Antelope Valley, Simi Valley police said in a news release. Her ex-husband, Zarbab Ali, 25, of Hawthorne, has been arrested in connection with the death.

The original story continues below.

When Emily Castillo returned home from work to the California apartment she shares with her sister, she found a frightening scene.

“As soon as I saw the blood, that’s when I realized something wasn’t right,” she told KABC. “I was running around the house trying to see if I could find her somewhere.”

Rachel Castillo, the 25-year-old mother of two young boys, has been missing since the night of Thursday, Nov. 10, Simi Valley police told the Los Angeles Times.

Her keys, phone, car and “a significant amount of blood” were found in her home, according to the publication.

Police said in a news release that Rachel Castillo, described as being 5 feet, 2 inches tall and 105 pounds with brown hair and eyes, is considered at risk.

“The most important thing is that she’s a mother,” her mother, Robyn Castillo, told KABC. “She has two little boys who are going to miss her, and we just want her home.”

The children were not at home when Rachel Castillo went missing.

Investigators are working “around the clock” to try to find her, police told the Los Angeles Times.

“We don’t even have a suspect because we don’t know what happened,” Cmdr. Ritchie Lew told the publication. “What the detectives are trying to figure out is what happened and where she is.”

Police ask that anyone with information call 805-583-6950.

Simi Valley is a city of 126,000 people about 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

This story was originally published November 13, 2022 at 9:02 AM with the headline "‘Significant amount of blood’ found at home of missing mom, California police say."